Web Content Viewer (JSR 286)

Web Content Viewer (JSR 286)

U.S. Codex News—Friday, June 28, 2013

Recent Meetings

Executive Committee (CCEXEC) The Committee met June 25 - 28 in Rome, Italy, to conduct a critical review of the standards and proposals for new work that will come before the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) for adoption. With few exceptions, CCExec recommended adoption of the draft standards and approval of the new work proposals.

The committee also reviewed the Draft Strategic Plan (2014 - 2019) and with minor revisions to address country comments forwarded it to the CAC with a recommendation that it be adopted.

Also on the agenda was consideration of funding options for scientific advice for the Codex committees. The committee heard from the WHO representative who urged CCEXEC to encourage Member States to send a clear message to the governing bodies of WHO and FAO requesting that they assign the highest priority in terms of funding levels to the provision of scientific advice to Codex. The WHO representative also urged additional donations for the Codex Trust Fund, which faces a $1.1 m shortfall in 2014.

New Electronic Working Groups (eWG)

Committee on Food Additives (CCFA)

Prioritization Exercise: At its last Session, the Committee agreed to establish an eWG, led by Canada, working in English only, to prepare a discussion paper that would include different options for the use of prioritization exercise outcomes and other feasible steps to identify compounds for re‐evaluation by JECFA. The discussion paper will be considered at the next session of the CCFA. Interested Member Countries and observer organizations should provide the names, affiliations, email addresses and telephone numbers of their official designated representatives to: Mr. Steve Theriault (steve.theriault@hc‐sc.gc.ca) with a copy to the Canadian Codex Contact Point (Codex_Canada@hcsc. gc.ca) as soon as possible. Parties in the United States that are interested in contributing to the U.S. participation in the eWG should contact the U.S. Codex Office (uscodex@fsis.usda.gov).

Food Additive Provisions: At its last Session, the Committee agreed to establish an eWG, led by Australia, working in English only, to continue work on the alignment of the food additive provisions of commodity standards of the General Standard for Food Additives (GSFA). Specifically, the eWG will work on the following:

alignment of the meat standards, including a proposal for the revision of the relevant food categories of the GSFA and revision of the food additive sections of the meat standards;

alignment of the Standard for Bouillons and Consommés and the standards related to chocolate and cocoa products;

food additive provisions of the GSFA that, according to the CCFFP, are not technologically justified in the products covered by the draft Standard for Smoked Fish, Smoked-Flavoured Fish and Smoke-dried Fish and prepare recommendations for Annatto extracts, bixin-based (INS 160b(i)) and- Tartrazine (INS 102) in food category 09.2.5 “Smoked, dried, fermented, and/or salted fish and fish products, including molluscs, crustaceans and echinoderms” in Table 1 and 2 of the GSFA (Ref. REP13/FA paras 29-30); and

food additive provisions of the GSFA that, according to the CCPFV are not technologically justified in specific food categories covered by the Standards for Certain Canned Citrus Fruits (CODEX STAN 254-2003), for Preserved Tomatoes (CODEX STAN 13-1981) and for Processed Tomato Concentrates (CODEX STAN 57-1981).

Interested Member Countries and observer organizations should provide the names, affiliations, email addresses and telephone numbers of their official designated representatives to: Codex.Contact@daff.gov.au by July 12, 2013. Parties in the United States that are interested in contributing to the U.S. participation in the eWG should contact the U.S. Codex Office (uscodex@fsis.usda.gov) by July 8th.

Committee on Near East (CCNEA) At its last Session, the Committee agreed to establish an eWG, led by Lebanon, working in Arabic and English, to redraft the proposed draft regional standard for Doogh for consideration at its next session. Interested Member Countries and observer organizations should provide the names, affiliations, email addresses and telephone numbers of their official designated representatives to: Lena Dargham (libnor@libnor.org) and to Ave Khoury (akhoury@agriculture.gov.lb) by July 6, 2013. Parties in the United States that are interested in contributing to the U.S. participation in the eWG should contact the U.S. Codex Office (uscodex@fsis.usda.gov) as soon as possible.

Committeeon Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (CCFFV) At its last Session, the Committee agreed to convene an eWG, led by the United States of America and working in English only, to consider the possibility of revising the Maturity Requirements in the Codex Standard for Table Grapes based on the International Organization of Vine & Wine (OIV) request to align it with relevant OIV texts. Interested Member Countries and observer organizations should provide the names, affiliations, email addresses and telephone numbers of their official designated representatives to: Dorian Lafond (dorian.lafond@ams.usda.gov), with a copy to Kenneth Lowery of the U.S. Codex Office (Kenneth.Lowery@fsis.usda.gov and USCodex@fsis.usda.gov) by July 31, 2013. Parties in the United States that are interested in contributing to the U.S. participation in the eWG should contact the U.S. Codex Office (uscodex@fsis.usda.gov) by July 26th.

Other News

Scientific Assessment: The summary and conclusions of the 77th JECFA meeting, held in Rome, Italy, from June 4-13, 2013 are currently available on the FAO and WHO JECFA websites as follows:

Public Notice on Standard Setting Activities: The U.S. Federal Register published on June 21 the annual notice to inform the public of the sanitary and phytosanitary standard-setting activities of the Codex Alimentarius Commission. This notice also provides a list of other activities, both accomplished and planned, by each committee, including the development of commodity standards, guidelines, codes of practice, and revised texts. This notice covers the time periods from June 1, 2012, to May 31, 2013, and June 1, 2013, to May 31, 2014, and also provides contact information for the U.S. Delegates to each committee so that interested parties can provide comments on Codex standard-setting activities. The notice is available at: